A New Friendship
by suchaphangirl
Summary: Dan is in a wheelchair and he has trouble getting a book down from a shelf in a library and that's when Phil comes into his life.
1. Chapter 1

"Fuck!" Phil Lester immediately looked over when he heard someone shout.

It was a Tuesday afternoon and Phil had been in his library, looking for some new books to read. Phil was a big reader, and always had been, and he loved reading new books so he definitely spent a lot of time in the library.

Phil frowned when he saw a young man in a wheelchair, trying to reach a book on one of the high shelves.

"Excuse me, sir?" Phil quickly walked over to him.

The young man with black hair and dark brown eyes looked up at him, looking frustrated and a little embarrassed.

"Hi," the young man mumbled, quickly looking down at his hands.

Phil chuckled. "Do you need any help getting a book down?" He asked calmly.

The young man looked up at him. "No, I'm fine. This happens all the time. I can get it…"

Phil frowned as he watched the young man try to reach up and grab the book that he was trying to get. Phil quickly stopped him, before he hurt himself, and grabbed the book for him. The young man blushed when Phil handed him the book.

"My name is Phil," Phil introduced himself, giving a friendly smile.

"I-I'm Dan," Dan whispered, blushing. "Thank you for this," he said as he held up a book.

"That's a really good book, by the way," Phil told him, nodding towards the book which was '_Divergent_'.

"Oh, is it?" The young man, Dan, asked as he looked up at Phil.

Phil smiled and nodded. "Yeah, you're going to absolutely love it. I read it a few months ago and it was really good. I can't wait for the movie to come out, the trailer looks amazing," he said.

"Yeah. That's why I wanted to read it. I saw the video on Youtube and thought it looked good and then I found out that there was a book so I decided to come to the library. I'm sorry, I talk a lot when I'm nervous," Dan apologized.

Phil chuckled. "It's fine. No need to apologize," he said. "Do you live around here?"

Dan blinked a few times as he looked up at Phil. "Yeah, I live about 10 minutes away from here. Why do you ask?" He asked.

"Well, I was just wondering if I could treat you with a cup of coffee," Phil said.

Dan frowned. "Why would you want to hang out with some loser in a wheelchair?" Dan asked.

"Hey, don't say that. I'm sure you're not a loser. You're definitely not a loser just because you're in a wheelchair and you seem like a really cool guy who obviously has good tastes in books. I'd like to get to know you, maybe we could hang out and possibly start a new friendship if that's what you wanted," Phil said.

Dan took a deep breath. "A coffee sounds nice," he said, blushing even more. He was pretty sure his face was red by now. Dan hated that he blushed easily. It just wasn't usual when someone actually wanted to talk to him.

Phil smiled. "Great! Do you think I could get your number by any chance?" He asked.

"Oh, yeah! Do you have a piece of paper I could use? I have a pen." Dan said as he pulled out a pen.

"Yes, of course, just give me a second," Phil said. He sat his backpack down on the table next to him. He pulled out one of the notebooks that was in his backpack and opened it up, and then he tore off a small piece of paper and handed it to Dan. He watched as Dan wrote his number down on the piece of paper. Dan took a deep breath as he stared at his number which was now written on the piece of paper before he finally held the piece of paper up.

"Here you go," Dan said. He sighed, "I'm free all the time so text me or call me whenever you want," he told Phil.

Phil nodded. "I will. It was nice meeting you. Enjoy the book!" He said.

Dan smiled. "Thanks again for helping me get it down," he mumbled. He looked at Phil one more time before he wheeled off.

Phil took a deep breath as he looked down at the number on the piece of paper. He would definitely be calling Dan later.


	2. Chapter 2

Dan sighed as he sat on the couch in his living room. It had been a week since he had met Phil.

Dan should have known. He should have known that Phil wouldn't call him. Phil was just like everybody else was. He just wanted to get Dan's hopes up and make him feel normal for once and then forget about him, just like everybody else.

Dan just thought that maybe Phil would be different from everybody else. Clearly he was wrong.

Dan bit his lip as he looked around his apartment. He didn't know what he was going to do. He had already filmed his Youtube video for the day and he wasn't planning on starting to edit it later. Not many people knew that Dan had a Youtube channel and that he had quite a few subscribers. He had a little over 100,000 subscribers and he was proud of that. None of the subscribers knew that Dan was in a wheelchair though. He had that part from them. He was too embarrassed and he was afraid that everybody would make fun of him if they found out. He already got enough of that in the real world.

Dan looked over and spotted his wheelchair by the door. He groaned. He sat there for a few seconds before he finally decides to try to stand up but gasped when he lost his balance and landed right onto the floor. This wasn't the first time that Dan had fallen like this. He had tried multiple times to walk by himself but nothing ever worked.

Phil smiled as he walked into his bedroom. He was planning on going out for the day as it was a nice day out, which was unusual because London always had crappy weather. Phil was going to enjoy it while he could. He walked over to his closet and grabbed his jacket and pulled out his wallet from the pocket. He blinked a few times when he felt something else and then he pulled out a piece of paper. He dropped his jacket as he unfolded the piece of paper. He frowned when he saw Dan's phone number.

He had completely forgotten to call Dan after they met and now he felt horrible.

Phil walked over to his bed and sat down. He pulled out his phone and immediately called Dan.

"Hello?" Dan asked when he finally answered his phone.

Phil sighed in relief. "I'm so glad you picked up," he said.

"Who is this calling…? _Phil_?" Dan asked nervously.

"Hey, I'm so sorry about not calling you back. It totally slipped my mind," Phil said.

"Don't worry about it. It's not the first time someone stood me up," Dan mumbled.

Phil frowned. Now he was really starting to feel bad for forgetting to call Dan earlier. Phil had been honest when he said that he wanted to form a friendship with Dan. Dan really did seem like a cool person to hang out with. "I really didn't mean to stand you up, Dan. I really did want to hang out with you. I do think that you're a cool guy and I want to hang out with you and get to know you better. I really think that we could form some kind of friendship," Phil paused for a few seconds. "Hey, what are you doing right now? Are you doing anything important?" He asked curiously, smiling slightly.

"Well… right now I'm lying in the middle of my living room," Dan told him.

"Wait, why are you lying in the middle of your living room?" Phil asked curiously.

"It's complicated. To answer your question… no, I'm not doing anything right now." Dan said.

"How about we get some coffee and go to the movies," Phil suggested.

"No thanks. I don't like going to the movies," Dan told him.

"But, you said you were getting Divergent because you wanted to see the movie?" Phil asked.

"I am going to the movie. I wait until the movies are out on DVD and then I order it and watch it at home," Dan explained.

"Dan, that's silly. You should try going to the movies. It's a lot of fun," Phil said.

"There are too many people at the cinema. I don't do well with crowded places," Dan mumbled.

"Are you afraid that people are going to make fun of you for being in a wheelchair?" Phil asked.

Dan went silent for a few seconds. He took a deep breath, "you have no idea what I've been through,"

"Dan, I would never let anyone hurt you. I only met you once but I feel like we have a lot in common. We don't have to go to the movies but what about that coffee? On me," Phil told him.

"Fine," Dan said in defeat. "I'll get some coffee with you."

"Great! What's your address? I'll come pick you up," Phil said.

As soon as Dan gave Phil his address, Phil immediately got ready and left to pick up Dan.

A half an hour later; Phil showed up at Dan's apartment. He waited for a few seconds before the door opened. He glanced down and was a little surprised when he saw Dan already in his wheelchair and was ready to go.

"Wow. I thought you were stuck in the middle of your living room?" Phil asked.

"Like I said… it's complicated," Dan said. He shrugged his shoulders.

"Should we get going then?" Phil asked, quickly changing the subject.

"Okay. We need to take the elevator though," Dan warned.

"Gotcha, there are a lot of stairs in this apartment actually so I'll gladly take the elevator over the stairs," Phil said. He stepped aside and then he watched as Dan wheeled himself out of his apartment. Phil reached over and then he shut the door. He looked over at Dan and smiled. "Ready?" He asked, smiling at Dan.

"Can you lock my door real fast?" Dan asked as he handed his keys to Phil.

"Sure," Phil said as he took the keys from Dan.

Once Dan's door was locked… they finally left the apartment and decided to go to Starbucks, which is where Dan liked to go the most to coffee so Phil was very pleased about that. Phil could tell that Dan was still very nervous and slightly scared about hanging out with him but Phil only hoped that he would be able to get Dan to see that he wasn't look all those other people who teased him about being in a wheelchair. Phil wasn't like those people.

"Here we go," Phil said as he walked into Starbucks, holding the door for Dan.

Dan glanced up at him as he wheeled himself into Starbucks but didn't say anything. "Hey, you go pick a table and I'll order for you. What do you want?" Phil asked as he looked down at Dan.

Dan told him what he wanted and then he found him and Phil by the windows. He pushed one of the chairs out of the so he could have more room. Dan looked over at Phil again and sighed. Dan wanted to be Phil's friend. A friend is something Dan has always wanted his whole life. He was only a friend to be hurt so he had to be wary of whom he hangs out with. He was afraid of being used and afraid that nobody would ever want to hang out with him for being him.

"Dan?" Dan was quickly shaken out of his thoughts when he heard Phil say his name. "Here," Phil handed him his coffee.

"I could have gotten it myself," Dan said as he grabbed his coffee.

Phil sat down in the chair across from Dan. He frowned and looked up at Dan. "I was just being nice,"

"It's just… some people think that I can't do normal things just because I'm in a wheelchair," Dan mumbled.

"Dan, I do not care that you're in a wheelchair," Phil told him. He sighed.

"Let's just… talk about something else," Dan mumbled.

It went silent for a few seconds. Phil bit his lip as he stared at Dan. "So, how old are you then?" He asked.

"Um, I'm 22-years-old," Dan told Phil. He looked up at Phil again. "You?"

"I'm 26-years-old," Phil said, shrugging his shoulders.

"You look a lot younger than that," Dan said. "I mean that in a good way," he quickly added.

Phil chuckled and shook his head. "Well, thanks…" He said. "What caused you to be in a wheelchair? If you don't mind me asking…" He bit his lip nervously, hoping Dan wouldn't get upset with him.

"Um," Dan took a deep breath. He looked down at his hands, "I don't know you enough to talk to you about it."

"Totally understandable. I guess I'm just curious," Phil told him.

Eventually Dan and Phil were finally able to get past the awkwardness and they started a real conversation. Dan had found out that he did have a lot of common interest with Phil. They talked about Youtube, of course Dan didn't dare say anything about being a Youtuber, but they watched the same Youtubers. They loved the same bands and artists and songs. Dan couldn't believe that he and Phil had so much in common. He's never met anyone like him before. It was a nice feeling.

"Wow. It looks like we've been here for an hour?" Phil said as he pulled out his cell phone and looked at the time.

"It seems like we've only been here for five minutes," Dan said.

"So, do you wanna head out then?" Phil asked Dan.

"I guess so," Dan said, shrugging his shoulders. He sat fully up in his wheelchair.

Phil smiled and then he stood up from his chair. He and Dan started to go out of Starbucks together, but Dan stopped as soon as he heard someone call his Youtube name 'danisnotonfire'. Dan took a deep breath and nervously looked over and saw a girl walking towards him. He was terrified about what the girl was going to say to him. He had never told his subscribers that he was in wheelchair. Phil would then know that he had lied to him about being a Youtuber.

"You're danisnotonfire, from Youtube. I watch your videos all the time," The girl said.

Dan turned his wheelchair slightly as he stared at the girl. "Can I help you?" He asked calmly.

"I was going to ask for a picture but it seems that you're in a wheelchair," she said.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Dan asked.

"You've never mentioned once in your videos that you had a wheelchair," the girl said.

"Because it's personal. I don't have to share everything with the internet," Dan snapped.

She scoffed and shook her head. "Whatever, I'm so unsubscribing from you when I get home," she mumbled. She walked passed Dan and Phil and walked out of Starbucks without saying another word.

Dan looked back over at Phil and frowned when he saw the look on his face.

"I can't believe you lied about that. You said you would never want to be a Youtuber," Phil said.

"Phil, I…" Dan began to say. He took a deep breath.

"Forget about it," Phil snapped. He shook his head and then he turned around and walked away from Dan.

Dan's eyes began to water up as he sat there for a few seconds, just staring at nothing. This is exactly why he didn't get close to people. He always somehow ended up screwing everything up. Life just seemed to hate him.


	3. Chapter 3

A couple weeks have passed since Dan had last seen Phil. Dan had tried sending him multiple texts, apologizing to him. He tried calling him and left multiple voicemails. Phil just didn't answer him at all and Dan was hurt by that. He didn't think that a little lie would affect Phil like this. Dan had finally made a new friend for the first time in years and he blew everything. He just had to go and screw everything up… just like he always did in life.

Dan wasn't having such a good time handling everything. Everything was going downhill. The girl he talked to at Starbucks had posted everywhere online that he was in a wheelchair, and had even gotten a picture of him. It's the only thing that people would talk about. He couldn't tweet or post on tumblr and even the comments on his videos were now filled with people talking about him being in a wheelchair. Dan couldn't stand it. He stopped going online because of it.

Dan's trust in people has gone down about 50% after everything that's happened with Phil. He hasn't spoken to anyone. He just stayed locked up in his apartment, where he was safe from the outside world.

But now, it was a Tuesday afternoon. Dan had finally got the courage to leave his apartment, as he had to return '_Divergent_' back to the library. He just wanted to return it and get back to his apartment as soon as possible.

Dan sighed with frustration as he wheeled himself into the library. Though, what he didn't know was that Phil was also at the library. Phil was sitting at a table, reading a book. But, he glanced over and then he sat fully up as soon as he saw Dan come into the library. He bit his lip nervously as he watched him wheel himself over to the library desk. Phil immediately stood up. He took a deep breath before he finally walked over to the library desk, where Dan was. Phil was a bit nervous to walk up to Dan as it had been about three weeks since they had spoken to each other and their last meeting didn't exactly end on a great note.

"Funny how we keep running into each other at the library," Phil said.

Dan immediately jumped when he heard the familiar voice. He looked up and froze as soon as he saw that it was Phil. He quickly sat the book onto the desk, not saying anything to Phil. Dan turned himself around.

"Hey, where are you going?" Phil asked. He ran over to Dan again and walked in front of him, so he couldn't leave.

"Get out of my way," Dan warned as he looked up at Phil.

"Can we talk for a second?" Phil asked, not moving from his spot.

"You are the last person that I want to talk to," Dan snapped.

"Why are you angry with me? I should be the one angry at you. You're the one who lied to me!" Phil yelled.

"Shh!" Phil looked up at the librarian and sighed.

"Can we please talk about this?" Phil asked quietly.

"Move out of my way," Dan said. He took a deep breath.

Phil sighed in defeat and then he stepped out of Dan's way. He watched as Dan wheeled out of the library but then he quickly followed him. "Dan!" Phil yelled. He ran over to him, grabbing the wheelchair to stop him from going anywhere.

"Will you please just let me go home?" Dan asked as his eyes began to water up.

"We would have never been in this position if you had just been honest with me," Phil said as he walked in front of Dan again.

"I _have_ to lie about who I am. You just don't understand what I go through every single fucking day," Dan said.

"Dan, you shouldn't have to lie about who you are. I got to know you a little more last time we hung out and I really liked being with you. Why did you have to lie to me about being a Youtuber?" Phil asked.

"It's complicated," Dan mumbled as he looked down at his hands.

"Well, why don't we un-complicate it. How about we hang out again this weekend or something?" Phil suggested.

"Why do you want to hang out with me so badly?" Dan asked curiously.

"Because… I like you," Phil said. He shrugged his shoulders.

"Oh please, no one likes a guy in a wheelchair," Dan mumbled. He rolled his eyes, "please get out of my way!"

"Dan… I don't want to end the friendship that we started like this," Phil said.

"Don't you have other friends that you could hang out with?" Dan asked.

"Well, of course I do. But, you're different than them," Phil said.

"Because I'm a guy in a wheelchair," Dan mumbled. He sighed.

"No! Not because you're in a wheelchair. I like you for you. We have a lot in common; we both like the same bands and music and we watch the same movies and TV shows. I've never met anyone like you and that's a good thing," Phil said. He took a deep breath as he stared at Dan. "You gotta learn to trust people sooner or later in your life. I know you've been through a lot but you can trust me. I'm not like all those other people who have treated you like crap. I promise!"

Dan stared at him for a few seconds. "Fine," he mumbled.

"Really?" Phil asked excitedly. "So, is this weekend okay?"

"I'm busy this weekend. Can we just go to my apartment today?" Dan asked.

"Oh, sure. Just lead the way there," Phil told him, nodding. He stepped aside so Dan could go in front of him.

Dan took a deep breath and slowly nodded. "Okay," he mumbled.

20 minutes later; Dan and Phil were finally at Dan's apartment. Dan was nervous about having Phil over. He hadn't had a guest over properly in probably a couple of years. Dan was just afraid of what people would say if they saw how he navigated around his own apartment. So, to avoid that… he never let anyone over. Phil was an exception.

"So, is this where you make your famous videos?" Phil asked as Dan led the way into his living room.

"Uh, no… I usually film in my bedroom but it's a mess right now so we should probably stay in here," Dan told him.

Phil chuckled. "Alright then," he said. He bit his lip nervously as he watched Dan wheel over to the couch. He watched carefully as Dan lifted himself up from his wheelchair and then he sat down on the couch.

Dan looked up at Phil and stared at him. "You can sit down you know. I don't bite," he said.

"Well, maybe but I mean… you never know…" Phil said, joking slightly. He finally walked over to the couch and then he sat down next to Dan. "I think we should talk…" He started to say. He looked over at Dan.

"Look, I'm sorry that I lied to you but I did what I had to do," Dan said.

"Why? You shouldn't have to lie about who you are," Phil said.

"I did it because I don't want people on the internet to know that I'm in a wheelchair…" Dan told him.

"But, what about that girl we saw? The one who recognized you?" Phil asked curiously.

"Everybody knows. My internet life is ruined," Dan mumbled as he looked down at his hands.

"What are people saying then?" Phil asked calmly.

Dan shrugged his shoulders and remained silent, still staring at his hands.

"It was really that bad?" Phil asked with shock. "Dan, I'm sorry…"

"It's my fault. I shouldn't have lied and now I got myself in this position," Dan said.

"You've been through a lot. I don't know what you've been through but I can tell that you really have been through a lot. You don't trust people because of how they treat you. It's really not your fault," It then went silent for a few seconds. Phil bit his lip slightly as he stared at Dan. "I watched some of your videos a while ago."

"You did what?" Dan asked as his eyes went wide with shock.

"After the last time we saw each other, and how I found out that you really were a Youtuber… I wanted to watch your videos for myself to see what they were all about. I had no idea that you had over two million subscribers. People must really love your videos. And, if they're going to send you hate or unsubscribe to you because of a little lie… then they're missing out on a lot because you're videos really are great. I spent a good hour watching most of your videos." Phil said.

"You're just saying that…" Dan whispered as his eyes began to water up.

"I'm saying it because I mean it," Phil told him.

Dan nervously looked up at him. "Why are you so nice to me?" He asked.

"Because, you deserve it. I really do like you. We obviously have a lot in common with each other. We love the same bands and we watch the same TV shows. Its obvious fate wants us to be friends," Phil said.

"A friend is all I've ever wanted. No one gave me the time," Dan said.

Phil smiled. "I'll give you all the time in the world," he said.

"Thank you, Phil. It really does mean a lot to me… that you're doing all of this, taking time out of your own life." Dan said. He took a deep breath as his eyes began to water up. Crying in front of Phil was something Dan didn't want to do.

"It's my pleasure. If you ever need a friend, then I'm here for you. Just remember that," Phil assured him.

Dan couldn't help but smile, for the first time in weeks.

"Maybe I overreacted when that girl said you were a Youtuber. I mean, it really was just a small lie," Phil said.

"No! I shouldn't have lied to you period. You're being so nice to me and I should have told you the truth," Dan said.

"Well, I know the truth now and that's all that matters," Phil said.

"I can't believe I might actually have a friend for once in my life," Dan whispered.

"You've never had a friend before?" Phil asked, frowning.

"I used to have quite a few… before the wheelchair incident happened," Dan mumbled.

"Well, you have me now. I won't leave you no matter what," Phil said.

Dan looked up at him and smiled. "Thanks. It's nice to know that I have a friend," he said.


End file.
